Tough Love
by LostInThoughtDR
Summary: Reyna has four bars in her arm. Every bar represents a year in her life. Story about those four bars. Short Story -not one-shot- about Reyna's life from when she joined CJ to she she sees Jason on the Argo II and probably even longer
1. Prologue

It's me once again, your not-favorite author. I decided to post this to get feedback and then finish Don't want to say Goodbye and then start writing this story. This chapter is the prologue. Hopefully, you won't press back or cancel before you finish.

Me do not own. Duh.

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'Till Kingdom Comes' Music cue

It's been a 2 days since the Pirates dropped Hylla and Reyna off in the at the dock in Eureka, California. The pirates dropped them off since Hylla was kind of the one in control. After days of being under their control, Hylla got restless and tired of it. She overthrew them, showing them who had the upper hand. But she didn't want to be in that ship. Hylla wanted to protect Reyna and that ship wasn't their place. Now, they were driving aimlessly through northern California. Hylla _rented_ a car once they found the chance. She was driving while Reyna was seated next to her, head resting on her arms looking out the window. Reyna has been awfully quiet lately. Hylla knew it was hard on her, even if she didn't show it. First, she found a home after so long in Circe's School of Magic. They didn't have a bad life; but that got destroy. Then the pirates took over, making them prisoners. This was too much to handle for any thirteen year old girl.

"What are you thinking about?" Hylla asked her.

Reyna looked like she was lost in her own thoughts. She sighed and leaned back in her seat. She fixed the dress (She was wearing a light green plaid sun dress that she owned from Circe's Island) and propped her legs up, hugging her knees. She was a pretty girl, with sun-kissed skin and long dark-brown hair. She remembered Hylla of herself, when she was the glorified barbie-doll secretary.

"I'm simply wondering" Reyna answered, "What are we doing here in California? We aren't from here. Why don't we go home now that we are free?"

Hylla's grasp on the wheel tightened. "I told you already. We aren't going back there" Hylla said with a tone that told Reyna that this conversation was over. But Reyna insisted.

"We can go back to Abuela in Puerto Rico"

"I told you! We aren't going back"

Reyna jaw tightened. It was like she had no say. She probably didn't. Yet.

Reyna decided to drop the conversation as they drove. She didn't know why there were in California. They didn't belong here. But perhaps they didn't have a home in Puerto Rico neither. Reyna had a feeling that was what Hylla was trying to tell her all this time but never had the heart to tell her little sister directly. They were told that they were daughters of Bellona, the Roman goddess of foreign warfare while at Circe's Spa and Resort. It explained why she felt quite comfortable with a sword in her hands, something unlikely about any thirteen year old.

"Let's stop here" Hylla said as she parked the car in a small city plaza looking out to the ocean. There were couple of small shops aligned, including a diner. It made Reyna's stomach to growl. "Let's grab something to eat" Hylla walked toward the diner first.

Reyna was walking slowly behind when something caught her attention. She looked out into the distant, to the woods on the other side of the street. There were two huge shining dots. Reyna narrowed her eyes to take a better look. It looked like a pair of eyes. If she known better, she would say there was a wolf but that was impossible, wasn't it?

'_It's almost time'_ A voice chimed in her head. Reyna looked around. That voice came from somewhere and it wasn't her head. She wasn't crazy. But Reyna had seen some freaky stuff so a voice speaking inside her mind shouldn't really freak her out. Reyna looked out to see the pair of eyes but it wasn't there anymore. What was that all about? Reyna swallowed and walked toward the Diner, behind Hylla.

"While at Circe's, I heard about a group. The amazons. I think we should head there" Hylla was telling Reyna as they ate. Reyna was listening quietly, her gaze lowered. "They should be somewhere in Seattle. There been stories about them since Ancient Greece. They are warriors. Warriors, Reyna, like us" Hylla seemed to have a plan for her sister and herself. "They defeat their opponents and don't let anyone walk over them. We are going there"

Reyna glanced up at that. "Don't I get a saying in this?" Reyna asked her sister.

Hylla glanced at her as if she was loosing some brain cells. "What else do you want to do, Reyna? We have no where else to go. Do _you_ have a plan?"

"No but..." Reyna swallowed, not sure how to say this. "It would have been nice if you have spoken to me about it"

"Ain't I now?"

"No, you aren't" Reyna snapped back, "You simply told me to follow you blindly"

"You are thirteen, Reyna. You have no idea"

Reyna was getting angry.

"I'm not a child" She said, her hands turning into fists.

"You are thirteen. Only because you are tall and seem older, doesn't make you an adult" Hylla put her fork down and placed a twenty dollar bill down and walked out. She was done with this conversation.

Reyna put her own fork down and took in a breath. She tried to calm herself down before she spoke to Hylla again.

"I'm not going to the Amazons" Reyna said, defying her sister, as she caught up to her.

"What?" Hylla said as if she didn't hear Reyna correctly.

"I said, I'm not going. I'm not following you to the Amazons" She said again, crossing her hands over her chest.

"Well, too bad. You don't have no other choice" Hylla said and dismissed Reyna.

"You can go. I'm not" Reyna continued.

Hylla turned to face Reyna again. She snorted but then saw that Reyna was being serious.

"You are not serious"

"I cannot get any more serious"

"What will you do, Reyna?" Hylla asked, anger flaring up to her head. "We are demi-gods. This world isn't safe to us if you don't know where to go. The monsters will follow your scent. They'll kill you"

Reyna had to admit, that made her hesitant. But she wasn't going to back down now.

"I can defend myself" Reyna said. "I'm not afraid of Death" She lied.

Hylla could now sense how serious Reyna was.

"You are so stubborn" She muttered to herself and then looked at Reyna in the eye. She saw that she couldn't argue with Reyna nor drag her to the north. "Just like you aren't backing down, so ain't I. I'm going to join the Amazons" Hylla said, finally speaking to Reyna as an adult.

"So here we part ways" Reyna said, trying not to tear up. Hylla was her sister. She was her only family and she couldn't stand being separated but this was for the best. Or she like to think.

"I guess we go" Hylla said. "But I already warn you. You'll have to be careful about the monsters"

Reyna nodded with a faint smile, "I know"

"I'm going to take the car, seeing that I'm the one who is legal to drive. I'll give you the food, seeing that you'll need it more than I. You probably have your dagger in your pocket"

Hylla stayed silent for a moment. She was debating whether to tell Reyna or not. Eff it, she was going to tell her.

"I think I should tell you. Just like I heard about the Amazons, I also heard about another safe place for people like us"

Reyna raised a brow, curious.

"It's somewhere around here, in California I mean. But before you head to that place, you'll have to pass a test before they lead you to your new home"

"What is this new place you speak about?" Reyna wondered.

"I do not know myself"

That was a sign. Not even Hylla knew about it? Was it strong? Would they take Reyna in? But before she asks those questions, she has to ask:

"What is this test?"

"The Wolf House"

_Wolfs,_ Reyna thought. Wolfs mentioned twice already. That wasn't a coincident. _It's almost time, _a voice had told her. Were they talking about the Wolf House? Reyna bit her lip. They usually associated Wolfs as bloody deadly savage animals. What will she find in this Wolf House?

It's been five days since Reyna got separated from Hylla. She's been traveling on feet the entire time that her sandals were close to disappearing. She had encounter a few monsters but they wished they hadn't encountered her. She had defeated them but she wasn't freed without a few scars. Her hair was unruly, falling down her back. She had a few wounds here and there. Her green dress was torn on the side of hip, where a monster had attacked her. She had a wild animalistic look to her eyes. But she was close. She could simply _feel_ the Wolf House near.

Reyna walked a few minutes more when she came across the beaten down house. She didn't smile relieved that her quest was over. She had a feeling it wasn't over but it just begun. Reyna walked close to the house and walked inside the front door. There was a couple of wolves lounging here or there on the sides of the grand room. Reyna had her dagger out, held out on her arm, as if saying _Come closer if you dare._

Reyna came to the end of the grand room and saw a wolf. The biggest wolf ever. It was the she-wolf.

_About time you arrived, Child of Bellona. I've been expecting you_

Reyna didn't put down her dagger. The tip of the she-wolf's mouth curled, as if she was smiling.

_I don't blame you for being guarded. I quite respect that. You are expected to become a great leader._

The she-wolf looked to the side and, hesitantly, Reyna followed her gaze. Her stomach growled. There, was a pile of food on top of a table, food of all kind. Reyna hadn't seen food in about 2 whole days; little to say, she was starving.

Reyna glanced at the she-wolf. Should she eat? She didn't wait for an answer from the she-wolf. Reyna stepped close to the table. A few wolves stood and walked closer. They were talking possession of the food. The more Reyna got closer, they growled but Reyna ignored them.

She extended her arm once she was close enough and grabbed anything she could, placing it inside her mouth. A wolf barked at her, it's fur all spiked out. Reyna grabbed her dagger and dared the wolf to come closer. The wolf barked once more and jumped forward but Reyna was quick. She slashed the wolf in it's chest, causing it to fall back. Reyna gave the wolf a final glare and then returned her focus on the food.

_Eat up, child_. The she-wolf was smiling. That was the first test and Reyna passed. She had over-powered her enemy in order of survival. _Your training shall start tomorrow. But today, eat up and rest. You will need your energy._

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N/A: hey guise. I do not know if you read RR's tweet, but reyna's from Puerto Rico. I tried to incorporate some of that into the story and will continue trying. I'm dominican so I feel like Reyna is my Caribbean neighbor xD But that just made us have more questions. (us: tumblr fandom). How old was Reyna when she joined Circe's...? Who is her father? Etc etc. I have a theory that Reyna and Hylla didn't get along with their father. (explaining furthermore Hylla dislike toward men) Since Hylla is older, she saw the 'bad' things her father did but Reyna was ignorant of it -to an extent.

Next installment:

Mysterious girl with scarred past arrive at Camp Jupiter. Which cohort will she enter?

Tell me which cohort shall she join.

Favorite, follow or comment/review (not particularly in that order)


	2. Bar One: Reyna's Thirteen

Me do not own anything.

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Bar One: Reyna's Thirteen

Reyna's been traveling south for a four days now.

Lupa told her to set south and she'll find her new home. She also told her that she was destined to be a leader, after witnessing her natural leadership. Reyna didn't know what to say about that but she didn't want to think about it. After a rigorous training at the Wolf House, they set her free to wonder on her own. She had a quest to go south. She was beaten and tired from the training and yet she had to travel alone again. The trip to the south took her about 4 days. Lupa had given her nothing of food or medical supply nor money. And to make everything worse, she lost her dagger after a fight with a monster. Reyna had to stop at a Salvation Army to buy the cheapest thing they had that could make up for her torn up dress from the spare money Hylla had given her. She bought an over-sized tee shirt that surprisingly fitted her as a dress. But on the way to Camp Jupiter, that one got torn up also. Compared to the tee shirt, the old green dress was much more appropriate so she had to change into that again.

Reyna finally saw it in the distance. After the fog cleared up, the outline of a small city and military camp appeared. She smiled triumphantly; a hand over her chest as she limped her way there. She saw a statue who _moved?_ Reyna narrowed her eyes. The statue, Terminus, looked at her with a pity face. It saw a lot of people like her, who arrived tired from the trip. He didn't bother her since she wasn't armed. Reyna walked into the city. Her jaw dropped in amazement. The city was so beautiful. It looked like an old movie set, but this wasn't a set. This was reality.

She saw a couple of kids about her age eying her. They didn't seem to think she was odd, or out of place. It seemed like they thought her quite normal. She saw a couple of kids with towels around their shoulders, hair damp as if they just came from a swim. Reyna wanted to take a shower so bad. She looked around. Lupa told her to follow her instincts, that they'll guide her but her instincts were telling her to eat something and take a shower. Reyna looked around and saw a small path. She decided to follow it. She seemed to have reached the city's limits and was walking toward the military camp a few minutes away. She entered the military camp with no difficulties, quite easy actually. She looked around. Kids with armor stopped to look at her. Some had disgusted faces, probably due to her dirty torn dress, and some smiled kindly and pointed forward, telling her where to go. It was like a horrid first day at a new high school and everyone was staring at the new kid. She swallowed and kept walking.

She came to a halt when she saw a building. It seemed like this was the _main_ building. Reyna stood there, not doing anything for a while. Couple of kids gathered, staring at her and mumbling something to the other kids next to her.

Out of the building, a guy walked out. He was tall with strong built, brunette with short hair and dark eyes, and had a tattoo on his neck and another on his arm. He was wearing jeans and a purple tee-shirt, the same t-skirt other kids were wearing. He had his armor on with a dozen of metals. Behind him walked a girl with khaki shorts and the same purple t-shirt. They glanced at each other and the male broke away from the girl's gaze. He smiled at Reyna.

"It seems like you had a tough trip here" He said as he walked forward.

Reyna wanted to snort. Was he joking or simply stupid?

"Um..." He saw that Reyna wasn't understanding his sense of humor. "Anyways, we've been expecting you actually"

Reyna glanced at the girl behind him. She seemed like she was getting annoyed by him. He obviously was the one who was in charge around here. Probably because he seemed more charismatic than the girl.

"You seek to join the Legion" He continued. "The auguries are favorable" The girl behind him snorted and looked away. He didn't seem to notice though, "She is qualified to serve" He said but he seem to speak to the campers gathered around, which was about seventy or eighty.

"_Ave" _Shouted the campers.

The male motioned the senior officers to step forward. Five kids stepped forward, three guys and two girls.

"Do you have Credentials or Letter of Recommendations?" Asked one of those kids.

Reyna swallowed. She had no idea what they were speaking about to say the truth. But everyone was looking at her, waiting for her answer.

"I don't have any letter" She said honestly.

The male smiled kindly. He seemed to know what she's been through, which made her mad. He had no idea. But that warm smile...she couldn't stay mad for long.

"How about Credentials?" He asked her. He seem to be trying to drag an answer out from her.

"I-I..." She spoke softly, fidgeting if she should say the truth. "I was on a ship filled with Demi-gods..." She said lowly, that only the guy in front of her, the praetor, heard her. Every camper stepped closer, wondering what she had said.

The praetor smiled softly, "You got to be a bit louder, Dear. You might want the centurions to listen at least"

Reyna cleared her throat once again. "I was in a ship-filled with demi-gods in the Bahamas..." She said a bit louder. Only the centurions heard her, along with the two praetors. "A...unknown person destroyed the ship and let pirates free. My sister and I escaped..." She modified the story slightly.

"Where is your sister now?" Asked one of the centurions, "We can might help her too"

Reyna lowered her gaze. The praetor studied her and then shook his head, "It's okay if you want don't want to talk about her right now"

Reyna looked up at him. She studied his face and then nodded. He had a big-bother feel to him.

"So you know about the Gods?" Asked a centurions that had been silent until now. And he didn't ask that quietly. All the campers around them seem a bit more interested right now. Reyna looked between their faces. They seem like normal teens if they didn't have those armors around them. Reyna hugged her arm.

"Yes, I do know about the Gods and the Legends" She met the Praetor's eyes. "They _aren't_ legends. They are real" She said, though she knew that he knew that. Her eyes held pain behind them.

A small murmur came as the campers started whispering to the people around them. Reyna guessed they didn't meet someone who knew about the Gods every day...or is it just her? It's probably just her.

"Do you know your godly parent?" he asked her cautiously, trying not to freak her out.

"Bellona" Reyna answered instinctively.

Another murmur from the crowd.

"I'm daughter of Bellona..." Reyna rubbed her arm.

The praetor smiled. He seemed satisfied with what she said. He turned to the Centurions. "Who will take a stand for her?"

The murmur grew louder. Reyna glanced at the Centurions and saw them hesitant. They eyed each other carefully.

"You seem like a good catch" The praetor whispered to her and smiled. "This shall be interesting"

Reyna looked at the centurions again. It was like a poker game. Should they join or sit out for this round? There was a girl with a short bob that seem to be talking to another girl from her group. There was another guy who had his hands out as if he was saying, 'we have no chance', to another guy. The other guy chuckled and pushed the centurion on the shoulder. "C'mon" Reyna overheard. "The fifth cohort can use any help it can get. And she seems like good help" The guy who was speaking had short blond cropped hair. Reyna couldn't imagine him with any other hair-style since this one looked so good and natural on him. He had blue eyes and was wearing a purple tee shirt and rugged worn out jeans.

One centurion raised his hand, offering to accept Reyna into his cohort.

"Now go!" The blond from before pushed another centurion forward.

The centurion looked disoriented though he raised his hands. "Fifth cohort here..."

The girl with the bob also raised her hand with a smile. She had brown straight hair and light brown eyes. She looked friendly.

"Well, it seems like you'd have to choose" The praetor told Reyna.

Reyna bit her lips as she looked between the three cohorts. That one cohort said it was the fifth. That didn't sound so good, plus, that blond had said they needed all the help they could get. Reyna looked at the friendly looking girl. Reyna was obviously biased. She didn't trust males since she grew up that way.

"I choose that one" She pointed at the girl, who smiled gratefully.

"Good choice" The praetor winked at her. "Thats the third cohort"

The girl stepped forward to Reyna and shook her head. "I'm Harmony" She said with a smile. "You'll be so happy with your choice. The third cohort is great. Right in the middle of the five"

"Meaning: it's meh; Not to shabby but not as good" The praetor joked.

The girl, Harmony, eyed him with a suppressed smile.

"Alright Max. You are simply mad that she didn't choose your Cohort"

The praetor, Max was his name, made an offended face. "How dare you?"

"Yeah, yada yada..." Harmony waved her hand at him as she walked away with Reyna. Reyna looked back at Max, who was still looking at Harmony with a smile. He then chuckled, ran a hand through his hair and turned around.

"Don't mind him" Harmony said. "It's been a while since we had such an interesting Praetor" Harmony said with a chuckle. Right then another girl appeared next to Reyna and Harmony. She had blond wavy hair that reached her mid back. "Hey!" She presented herself. "I'm Bliss"

"Harmony and Bliss?" Reyna repeated looking between them. She was almost regretting joining this cohort.

"Yeah, I know how that sounds..." Bliss said. "But it's not my fault that my mom was a darn hippie!" She complained.

Harmony chuckled at Bliss.

"Where are you two going to anyways?" Bliss asked, "Barracks are that way" Bliss pointed at the opposite direction.

"We are going to get our new recruit all washed up"

"You're going to the baths?" Bliss asked.

"yes"

"Yay!" She said. "I'm going to pick up my things and new clothes for...?"

"Reyna"

"And get new clothes for Reyna" Bliss took off.

"She seems overly hyper-active, even for a demi-god, but she's harmless" Harmony said about Bliss. Reyna nodded.

"I see"

"We need to get you washed up before dinner"

At the word dinner, Reyna's stomach growled.

"I hope your stomach can wait till then"

Reyna put a hand on her stomach.

"Hopefully" She added. "So this whole Camp and Cohort thing, how does it exactly work?" Reyna asked Harmony.

"Well, that'll be a long story that we can share in the baths"

Reyna raised a brow at that. They were going to talk as they bathed?

"Trust me. Romans consider the baths _more_ than simply a bath. We'll have time to talk"

An hour Later

The Romans were certainly more than simply taking a bath. This was almost like a community center. There was a drawing room in one area with snacks on tables, a library in another room, and so much more. There was a common room where people, both girls and boys, hung out together. There were areas that they had to be dressed, of course. But obviously, there were the baths, open pools and private shower. Sauna rooms, steam rooms too, which Reyna thought were the same.

Bliss, Harmony, and Reyna were lounging back in a small room. Harmony was painting her toe nails, Bliss was seated back on a message chair and Reyna was sitting on a seat attached to the wall, hugging her knees. They were all wearing robes that they, the nymphs, gave them.

They had been asking each other questions, trying to get to know each other.

"So there's two praetors. Max and that other girl" Reyna said.

Bliss nodded, "Correct"

"Max is from the second cohort"

"Correct" Bliss said again. Suddenly she sat up and glanced at Reyna. She had a mischievous smile on her face when she glanced at Harmony and back at Reyna. "And he has this_ thing_ for Harmony~"

"He does not!" Harmony cried that she even messed up her small toe nail. "He doesn't like me like that. He's like that to everyone" She said defensively.

Reyna glanced at Harmony and swore she saw a slight blush.

"Yeah, he might be like that to everyone but he smiled differently when _you_ speak to him" Bliss rolled her eyes. "He totally likes her. Before he was praetor, he would ask her to train with him all the time"

Reyna chuckled. She wasn't so used to this _gal pal_ conversations.

"So, is there anything or anyone you want to know?" Harmony changed the subject.

Reyna thought and then came to a question. "Who was that centurion from the Fifth Cohort?" She asked. "Isn't there two?"

"Oh, you should mean Jake and Abby"

Reyna narrowed her eyes. The guy who raised his hand when standing for her was probably Jake but who's Abby? Reyna shook her head. "Earlier, when they were _standing_ for me, there was the centurion, who represented his cohort but there was this guy who he would ask for his opinions..."

Bliss and Harmony looked at each other. Reyna knew what she was talking about. That guy from earlier, the one who pushed Jake forward.

"A guy. He seems about my age, thirteen or fourteen. Lean but not scrawny, tall, tanned..." Reyna pouted when she saw the disoriented looks on Bliss' and Harmony's face. "Blond, blue eyes, cute"

"Ooooh" They said together.

'Thats Jason Grace, fifth cohort" Bliss said.

"He grew up in Camp Jupiter ever since he been two or something. Son of Jupiter too" Harmony added.

Reyna took that in. He grew up at Camp Jupiter. She wondered what life he had. Probably a sad one if he was son of Jupiter, Leader of the Gods.

They all heard a horn. "Dinner" Harmony said. "Lets get you dressed..."

Bliss passed Reyna the clothes she picked out for her.

Reyna looked inside the bag, "You got to be kidding" She snorted.

Inside the bag was a ruffled cream-colored short skirt, a purple top with the Camp's Slogan and a wool large sweater.

Harmony glanced inside the bag. "I'm sorry..." She apologized, "I should have picked out your clothes, instead of having Bliss do it.."

"Hey!" Bliss complained, "They're cute" She stuck out her tongue, "Plus, you have nothing else to wear so ha ha. I win!" She skipped out the room.

Reyna groaned. She felt as if she was back with Circe's.

"She's good..." Harmony said and shrugged, "Bliss cannot help it. She loves cute things. She's daughter of Eros, aka cupid. At least she's a beast in the battlefield"

Reyna had to wear it since she had nothing else. She threw a tiny tantrum. Out of everything, a skirt! She had been told she had pretty long legs and a skirt would only enhance them. The last thing she wanted.

"C'mon. You're new. I bet no one will notice you" Harmony tried to make her feel better.

What. A. Big. Lie. She kept tugging her skirt down during dinner since she thought it was showing too much leg but then had to pull it up since she thought it was showing too much stomach. She kept seated with Harmony and Bliss, trying to stay on the down-low, but these two seem to be very popular. Harmony was centurion after all but still. Girls and boys would come to their table. 'Who's your friend?', they would always ask, looking at Reyna.

'She's pretty' or something between those lines some guys would say. Most likely the guys from the first and second cohorts, the 'confident' ones.

'Is she any good with a sword?', some girls would ask.

"I'll stay away from her in the battlefield if I were you" Harmony would say, to defend Reyna. The girls would shrug and walk away.

"I'm the centurion, I need to help you out, right?" Harmony said with a smile. Soon, Harmony left to join Max in the Praetor table with other centurions. Reyna looked around the room. Jake had joined Harmony too. That guy from before, something Grace, was seated with 3 others; a girl and two boys. They seemed like they were very close. Reyna shrugged and looked away.

Six Months Later

Who would have thought that they taught Algebra at a Camp Jupiter?

Reyna was never used to this 'schooling' thing. She spent a lot of her life at Circe's island so she didn't get normally schooled there and she was too young in Puerto Rico for 'algebra' classes. And being dyslexic surely didn't help. Letters enough gave her trouble and now numbers _with_ letters? Last time she checked, letters should stay in their place and not interfere with math.

Today in class, there was a small worksheet layed in front of the kids. The teachers _claimed_ they understood that some of them have dyslexia and that the others are partially dyslexic but they simply gave them more time to finish the worksheet and tutoring hours if wanted. Reyna rubbed her temples and she stared at the paper in front of her. Geez, why does this have to be so hard?

Reyna sighed and looked at the clock, wondering when this was going to be over. She glanced around her and saw Jason Grace struggling just like her. She had some activities with him so she learned his name naturally. She decided to be nice for once.

"You're stuck too?" She asked him from her seat.

Jason raised his head and glanced at her. He simply sighed and Reyna immediately knew the answer, "Yeah" He said.

Reyna nodded and shrug, "Same here"

"Why can't numbers and letters be like enemies?" Jason said. Reyna could see the frustration in his face. "If letters can intrude in math, can't numbers intrude in English or something? Wait, no. They shouldn't since it'll be very complicated"

Reyna couldn't help but to crack a smile at his nonsensical rant. She glanced at his worksheet, "What number are you at?" She asked him.

"Um, three?" He said shyly. "You?"

"Six" She didn't feel as bad now.

"Ugh" Jason groaned quietly.

"Thanks" Reyna chuckled, "I don't feel as bad anymore"

Jason laughed sarcastically under his breath. "You are very much welcome"

"Here, let me see" Reyna grabbed his worksheet. She might be dyslexic but she was still confident with her work. It just took her longer than most to get done. Reyna studied the math problems he'd done so far. She bit her lip, "You missed the negative sign here and you confused your sevens with ones" She told Jason.

"Nuh huh" Jason complained but then he saw the he actually had confused his sevens with ones and missed a negative sign, "Oh.." He said, moving his pencil between his fingers.

"Yeah, I would say take your time but seeing that you're only on the third question after thirty minutes, I don't think is your problem" Reyna said.

"Shush" Jason told her. "Focus on your own work" Jason said but he said it playfully and friendly.

"It was kind of hard to ignore you sulking back here" Reyna added.

"Reyna and Jason..." The instructor told them to be quiet. Reyna focused on her work, as well as Jason.

"We apologize" Jason said meekly. Reyna smiled and chuckled under her breath.

One Week Later

It was that time of the day again. Reyna's utmost hated hour of the day. One word: Algebra. Reyna was walking to the class, dragging her feet as she did so. She didn't want to go inside. She was acting as if she was in a horror film, walking in to see if the killer was close.

_No, no. I don't want to go in. Noooo..._Reyna groaned as she walked. As she was almost there, she saw Jason Grace leaned against the wall. He also had algebra.

"Killing time before you enter Hell?" She asked him sarcastically as she walked over him.

Jason seemed to be spacing out but then Reyna realized he had his ipod buds on his ear. He removed them and looked at her, "Huh?"

Reyna shook her head, as in, _nevermind. _

She stood next to him, leaning against the wall too.

"Tootsie roll?" Jason offered her the candy casually.

Reyna raised her brow, "No, thank you" She said a bit confused since that was so random.

Jason shrugged and ate the small candy. "I really don't want to go inside there" Jason said as he chewed.

"Me neither" Reyna added with a sigh.

Jason chewed quickly and tried to swallow the candy. He turned to Reyna, "What if we don't show up?" He asked her.

"What you mean?" Reyna didn't really think he was suggesting _that_. "You mean like, _cutting_ class?"

Jason shrugged, "If thats what you call it these days, I guess yeah"

Reyna blinked. Jason seriously offered to cut class.

"I mean..." He shrugged, "...It's just for today and it won't hurt us much. But thats if you want."

Reyna bit her lip, "I don't know..." She never have cut class. She never had the chance to tell the truth. She never been to an actual normal school.

"Would you rather be inside that class? With all those number and letters moving around?" Jason taunted.

Reyna was getting persuaded. Jason had a point.

Suddenly, from the end of the hall, came a clicking sound, like heels on the floor. Jason and Reyna knew that sound. It was the teacher going to class.

"Shoot" Reyna said. If the teacher sees them, she'll make them go to class.

"So, what will it be?" Jason asked her with a mischievous smile.

Reyna started slowly walking toward the exit. "You win, Grace"

The two made a run for it toward the exit door.

Reyna and Jason were sitting on the roof-top, waiting for the time that the Algebra class ended. They can't exactly be seen out of class or else they'll find out that they were cutting. Jason was lying on his back as Reyna had her arms around her knees. Jason had his pocketsliterally filled with candy. Twizzlers, tootsie rolls, sour-patch kids, Sweden fish, et cetera. He, of course, had shared them with Reyna. He had one ear-bud on his ear as he listened to music and the other ear open just in case Reyna said something.

Reyna was unwrapping a twizzler when she glanced back at Jason. "So you practically broke in a candy shop?" She asked him, wondering how he got all this candy.

Jason chuckled, "Something like that" He joked. "Not really. Kota and I helped move some boxes around New Rome. The candy-shop lady gave us all of these"

Reyna raised her brow, cynical. "She gave you everything that can cause diabetes?" She asked.

"Fine" Jason finally gave up, "She told us that we can get anything that we wanted. We kind of got out of hand"

"I'd say" Reyna said.

Jason chuckled. Reyna looked forward with a sigh. It was a bit ….awkward being here, with Jason above all people.

"Want to listen?" Jason asked her as he propped himself up, passing her his head-phones.

Reyna hesitantly grabbed them. Jason simply encouraged her with a smile to put them on. She did and then noticed that he didn't pass her the actual iPod itself.

"I keep the power" He said, referring to the iPod.

Reyna didn't know if to chuckle or not. Jason was scrolling through the iPod, his finger moving in circular movements, looking for a song. He smiled when he clicked on a song and layed on his back again. Reyna listened carefully.

It was a soft melody, the singing started right away. It had repeating lyrics but it worked, since the lyrics were very poetic. It was very instrumental too at times but she didn't mind. Soon, the speed picked up but it all flowed. Reyna smiled. She liked this song and soon founded herself bobbing her head ever so softly. Jason chuckled as he looked up at the bright sky.

Soon, Jason stood up, "We have to go back eventually"

Reyna nodded. She had lost track of time but she guessed Algebra, her greatest enemy, was finally over.

* * *

Song: Coldplay - Death and All his friends

Chapter one done! Hopefully it wasn't too shabby. I think that the beginning took over the size of this chapter but oh well. More on the next chapter. I have planned a War Game scene and Jason and Reyna arguing. I want to follow their age. So right now they're 13 and kids that age are usually like, ew boys, or something -its been a while since i've been 13 so I wouldn't know- so I wanted to make a more friendly atmosphere for them instead of anything else.

For next chapter, they'll be fourteen. How do fourteen year old act? Hrrrm, this is a perfect time to ask for help from my readers. If any of you guys have any idea how Reyna and Jason should act to each other at age 14, please write them below. ^ ^

I was guessing they'll, without realizing, will notice more of the physical aspect of each other. For example: "I never really notice his eyes were so bright" or something like that. I feel like I make no sense.


End file.
